The United States is preparing to deport a group of Afghans in immigration detention to Pakistan in the coming weeks, Bloomberg reported Monday, citing a U.S. government official, lawyers and advocacy groups representing detained Afghans.
Afghans being held by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement have been notified that they could be deported to Pakistan, according to the report. The potential deportation flight has not been publicly announced by the U.S. government.
Among those told by immigration officers that they could be placed on the flight are relatives of Afghans who worked with the U.S. military before the fall of the former Afghan government in August 2021, Bloomberg reported, citing AfghanEvac, an organization that advocates for Afghans who assisted the United States.
According to the report, AfghanEvac said separately that a special charter flight was expected to leave Louisiana in the first week of November and that detained Afghans and their lawyers had been told for about two weeks that removals were being prepared.
The organization said there remained uncertainty over the flight’s destination. Some detained Afghans had been told they could be sent to Pakistan, while others had been told Afghanistan.
AfghanEvac also said it had received reports from sources within the U.S. government that Pakistan could be used as an intermediate destination before the Afghans are sent onward to Afghanistan, Bloomberg reported.
The reported plans come as the Trump administration pursues a policy of deporting some migrants to third countries — nations other than their countries of origin.
The United States has previously deported Afghans to countries other than Afghanistan. AfghanEvac said another deportation flight carrying at least 10 Afghans arrived in the Central African Republic last week. The organization also reported that a flight in August carried 12 Afghans to the country.
The prospect of sending Afghans to Pakistan comes as Pakistani authorities continue a large-scale campaign to return Afghans to Afghanistan.
More than 86,000 Afghans had been arrested or detained in Pakistan this year, according to the latest figures from the U.N. refugee agency and the International Organization for Migration. The agencies recorded 86,644 arrests or detentions between Jan. 1 and Oct. 17, with most involving undocumented Afghans or Afghan Citizen Card holders.
Amu TV has documented concerns among Afghans in Pakistan over the risk of deportation. Earlier this year, Afghans awaiting resettlement to the United States told Amu TV that being returned to Afghanistan could expose them to security risks, while others said they had been left in uncertainty after their U.S. resettlement cases stalled.
Figures from the U.N. refugee agency and the International Organization for Migration show that 812,131 Afghans returned from Pakistan between Jan. 1 and Oct. 17 this year, including 85,821 who were deported.
Since September 2023, more than 2.7 million Afghans have returned from Pakistan, including hundreds of thousands who were deported.
The U.N. has repeatedly called for returns to Afghanistan to be voluntary, safe and dignified, particularly for Afghans who could face protection risks if returned.
It was not immediately clear how many Afghans could be placed on the planned U.S. flight to Pakistan or whether Pakistani authorities had formally agreed to accept them.
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